2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup

The U.S. Men’s national team takes on Panama at 8 p.m. tonight in Tampa in a match that will likely decide the Gold Cup group they are placed in.

The winner of the Gold Cup will get a ticket to the Confederations Cup to represent CONCACAF in Brazil in 2013, a terrific start-up for the 2014 World Cup, also held in Brazil.

The U.S. defeated Canada 2-0 in its opening match. Also in the group are tiny Guadeloupe.

The Gold Cup typically ends in a monster Mexico-U.S. clash, and I expect it probably will again. But could this year’s tournament be different? In an incredible development, five Mexican players – the starting GK, two defenders and two midfielders – have been sent home for testing positive for taking banned substances.